King George VI inspects firemen at Lambeth HQ, October 1940

Photograph, World War Two, Home Front (1939-1945) 1940.

London's fireman were in the front line during the 'Blitz'. Between September 1940 and May 1941 London was constantly bombed and the capital's firemen struggled to contain fires caused by incendiary devices. During this period more than 20,000 Londoners were killed and 1.4 million were bombed out of their homes.

One of 58 British official photographs with original associated typescript captions, depicting scenes from the British Home Front and the Blitz, 1940-1941.